1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to optical devices, and, in particular, to optical modulators used, for example, in optical communication systems.
2. Description of the Related Art
An optical modulator is a device that modulates or varies the amplitude of an optical signal in a controlled manner. Optical modulators have many different uses in optical communication systems. For example, high-speed optical modulators are used to encode information into an optical signal generated by an optical source such as an optical laser, where the information is represented by changes in the amplitude of the optical signal. A low-speed optical modulator, also referred to as an optical attenuator, may be used in conjunction with an optical amplifier in the amplifier stage of an optical communication system, where the optical attenuator controls the overall gain of the amplifier stage to account for gradual changes in the received optical signal, for example, as the optical source ages.